COLLEGE SPORTS

STARKVILLE -- Jamaal Clayborn is finding the move from right guard to center to be more than just putting the ball into the quarterback's hands.
The Mississippi State junior has taken on a leadership role at his new position. Before he snaps the ball to quarterback Dak Prescott, he has to make sure everybody is on the same page.

STARKVILLE -- Dez Harris isn't like most football players.
The Mississippi State sophomore linebacker didn't hang his head after seeing his redshirt freshman season end last year with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

SCOOBA -- East Mississippi Community College sophomore running back D.J. Law admits he was disappointed when Division I football wasn't in his immediate post-high school future.
The hurt lingered for a while. After a couple of months, he decided it was best to make the most of his new football home.
EMCC reaped the immediate rewards of that decision.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Alabama and LSU each placed 10 players on the coaches' preseason All-Southeastern Conference teams, while Mississippi State senior quarterback Dak Prescott was named first team quarterback.

STARKVILLE -- Freshmen usually have two schools of thoughts when it comes to their first college football season. They either want to play right away or they want to sit out the first season and be redshirted.
Mississippi State junior linebacker Richie Brown fell in the latter category and was redshirted as a freshman. He said it was one of the best things that could have happened to him.

STARKVILLE -- Mississippi State redshirt freshman linebacker Gerri Green already is drawing comparisons to a former Bulldog linebacker.
Even though Green hasn't played for the Bulldogs, many think he is similar to Benardrick McKinney.
"It's a great compliment," Green said. "B-Mac (McKinney) was a great player. To be anything like him would be a good
accomplishment. Being compared to him and the things that he did here, that is a big compliment."

STARKVILLE -- Mississippi State men's basketball player Xavian Stapleton will be out six months after he suffered a knee injury earlier this week in practice.
According to a school press release, the 6-foot-6 Flora native, who transferred to MSU from Louisiana Tech and was going to have to sit out this season, tore the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee Monday in a pickup game. He will have knee surgery in September.

STARKVILLE -- A day after unveiling its non-conference schedule, the Mississippi State women's basketball team found out it will have 10 television appearances, including two ESPN2 games, as part of its Southeastern Conference slate released by the league office Thursday evening.
After closing the non-conference schedule Dec. 30 against South Florida in the SEC/AAC Challenge, MSU will return to the Sunshine State on Jan. 3, 2016, to begin league play at Florida on the SEC Network.

OXFORD -- The opening of the $95 million Pavilion at Ole Miss and a 29-game slate featuring 17 home dates and an appearance on ESPN2 highlight the 2015-16 Ole Miss women's basketball schedule released by coach Matt Insell on Thursday.
Ole Miss will play host to eight SEC foes, including 2015 NCAA tournament Final Four participant South Carolina and Mississippi State and Texas A&M.

FULTON -- Ladarius Gallion figured out quickly what it was going to take to excel in college.
"I had to get bigger, faster, and stronger," said Gallion, a former standout at West Point High School who is now sophomore
defensive lineman on the Itawamba Community College football team. "In high school, you are the big guy. Here, you are simply one of the big guys. I slimmed down a lot and put the weight where it needed to be most. You learn so much when you play junior college ball. It's an exciting time knowing your sophomore year is your last year here, so it's a big year."

STARKVILLE -- The doubt is gone.
Mallory Eubanks wondered how she would fit in when she participated in the United States Under-20 National Team Camp in January in Sanford, Florida. As a newcomer, Eubanks was one of 28 players (18 college soccer) vying for the attention of head coach Michelle French and the rest of USA Soccer.

STARKVILLE -- Taveze Calhoun and Will Redmond enter their senior years at Mississippi State as two of the football team's most experienced players.
The cornerbacks have been on the field at the same time for the past two seasons and have developed a chemistry that has solidified the back of MSU's defense.

STARKVILLE -- Mississippi State supporters can meet the school's 2015 football, soccer, and volleyball teams Saturday at the annual Fan Day celebration at the Palmeiro Center.
Doors open at 1:30 p.m. Autograph availability will run from 2-4 p.m. Fans are asked to enter through the southeast entrance of the Palmeiro Center. The football, soccer, and volleyball teams will arrive at 2 p.m.